"Nick approached us," Tatelman said. "He’s tech-savvy and he’s a tastemaker. He’s really smart and really creative. Once we got to know him, it was a pretty easy decision to get him on board."

Cannon, who stars in the new film "Chi-Raq," will influence the selection and display of merchandise. He'll also spot market trends and help grow the retailer's initiatives supporting STEM education -- science, technology, engineering and mathematics, Tatelman said.

The new RadioShack creative chief was already at work promoting the chain on Wednesday.

General Wireless, a division of hedge fund Standard General, acquired the brand in April. It now has more than 1,700 company-owned stores, including 1,400 Sprint stores at RadioShack, according to a press release.

Tatelman said RadioShack's neighborhood feel is essential to the brand.

"We kind of felt that the brand and neighborhood convenience electronics store shouldn’t die," Tatelman said. "We’ve been working hard to revitalize the store. And kind of rebuild."

February 2013: <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/wendy-sue-swanson-md-mbe-faap/tv-for-preschoolers_b_2704097.html"> Preschoolers Can Learn Great Things From TV</a>

<strong>Source</strong>: Huffington Post (to read the actual study, visit <a href="http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/early/2013/02/13/peds.2012-3872.full.pdf">Pediatrics</a> -- subscription required)
<strong>Gist</strong>: "New research out today by Dr Christakis finds that putting our time and energy into working to improve what our children watch, not just how much they watch, can have a positive impact on their behavior -- even for children as young as 3 years of age."